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The Hidden Window Mystery
The Hidden Window Mystery is the thirty-fourth volume in the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series. In it, Nancy, Bess, and George go to find a missing stained glass window in Charlottesville, Virginia. This book is notable as the final book to have an original 25-chapter text, and the final one to be revised. Beginning with The Haunted Showboat, all books have a 20-chapter text. Plot summary 1956 Nancy's latest mystery comes from an article in a magazine. A reward is being offered to anyone who can find a stained-glass window, featuring a knight and a peacock. A lead provided brings Nancy to believe the window is somewhere in Charlottesville, Virginia. Nancy convinces Bess and George to go with her to Charlottesville, and stay with her cousin, Susan Carr. Before leaving, however, Nancy finds that postman Mr. Ritter has collapsed on her porch. Their new neighbor, gossipy Mrs. Dondo, is furious that Mr. Ritter has lost a letter in which her brother, Alonzo Rugby, has sent a large amount of money. Mrs. Dondo proceeds to spread rumors that Nancy and Mr. Ritter took the money. Nancy also receives a telegram from Susan telling her not to come, though Nancy instead makes hotel reservations. When the girls arrive in Charlottesville, they discover via a news bulletin that Susan has been in a car accident. Susan reveals that a man in a mask ran her off the road, and that she did not send the telegram. Susan's husband Cliff also asks the girls to discover why an older man, Mr. Honsho, has refused to let anyone use his estate - the allegedly haunted Cumberland Manor - for an annual garden show. When Nancy and the girls go to Cumberland Manor, they are turned away; however, they notice the neighboring property is a beautiful but creepy mansion called Ivy Hall. Nancy tracks down the window's artist, Mr. Bradshaw, and takes one of his lessons to investigate his studio. While searching, Nancy discovers that Bradshaw has read the article about the reward. Not only that, but Nancy discovers Bradshaw's assistant is Alonzo Rugby! Before she can complete her snooping, Mr. Bradshaw asks her to leave. Since Mr. Bradshaw has spread the word of Nancy's snooping, the Carrs are disinvited to multiple dinner parties, but decide to have one of their own. At the party, Nancy is asked by Shiela Patterson, a retired actress, to investigate hauntings at Ivy Hall. Nancy, Bess, and George spend the night at Ivy Hall, and discover that the groundskeeper at Cumberland Manor is behind the hauntings at Ivy Hall. He says that he also read the magazine article, and thought that it may be at Ivy Hall, due to the place's rich history. The "haunting" noises were at first accidental, but then he realized that if the Pattersons thought the place was haunted, he would be able to have free reign to look around. 1975 The 1975 revision has the same story and most of the plot elements. The main difference is that Susan's African-American maid Beulah was replaced by the "plump" housekeeper Anna. Also missing were some elements that referred to Nancy's mother, such as Hannah showing Nancy a keepsake of her mother's. Reception Several elements of the original 1956 text have been criticized. The character of Beulah, the Carrs' African-American maid, was viewed as a racial stereotype. The scene where Nancy also first sees the "dark, small-eyed" Alonzo Rugby is viewed by some to be an example of racial profiling. Appearances Characters * Nancy Drew * Bess Marvin * George Fayne * Hannah Gruen * Susan Carr, Nancy's cousin * Cliff Carr, Susan's husband * Mrs. Dondo, Nancy's gossipy new neighbor * Alonzo Rugby, Mrs. Dondo's brother and Mr. Bradshaw's assistant * Mr. Bradshaw, the artist of the stained glass window * Shiela Patterson, the owner of Ivy Hall who is an actress * Annette Patterson, Shiela's daughter * Mr. Ritter, the mail carrier * Luke, the groundskeeper at Cumberland Manor Trivia * Susan is the cousin of Nancy through her mother. In the original text, Hannah Gruen also shows Nancy a keepsake that belonged to her mother. Category:Books Category:Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series Category:Article stubs